Refrigerating apparatus



April 13, 1965 P. e. FACEY, JR

REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Fi led Sept. 26, 1961 Fig. 2.

Fig. 3.

INVENTOR PHILIP G. FACEY, JR.

BY w SM ATTORNEY United atent Otlice APPARATUS Philip G. Facey, in, Columbus, @hio, assignor to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pa, a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Sept. 26, 1961, Ser. No. 1403534 4 Claims. (til. 62-272) This invention relates to domestic freezers, and to domestic refrigerators having freezer compartments.

A domestic freezer of the upright type usually has a door with an inner panel which protrudes inwardly when the door is closed, and usually has an uppermost evaporator coil assembly supported closely adjacent to the uppermost liner of the food storage compartment. Such an evaporator coil assembly is usually referred to as a cold plate. Relatively warm, moist air from outside the freezer leaks past the door gasket while the door is closed and also enters when the door is opened, rises in convection currents along the inner face of the door, and contacts the front or door-facing edge of the uppermost cold plate. The moisture in such air forms frost along the front edge of the uppermost cold plate, which builds up towards the door, and after a period of time contacts the inner door panel, preventing the door from closing.

This invention prevents frost from building up along the front edge of such a cold plate, by providing a baflle between the front edge of the cold plate and the door inner panel, which with the portion of the uppermost liner between the bathe and the door inner panel, deflects the moist, warm air downwardly so that it does not impinge against the front edge of the cold plate. This warm air by contacting the front of the baffle and the portion of the uppermost liner between the baffle and the door inner panel, warms them and prevents frost from forming on them.

An object of this invention is to prevent frost from building up along the front edge of the uppermost cold plate of a freezer or freezer compartment.

Another object of this invention is to deflect warm, moist air leaking into a freezer or freezer compartment,

' away from the front edge of the uppermost cold plate of the freezer or freezer compartment.

This invention will now be described with reference to the annexed drawings, of which:

. FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic side view of the food storag compartment of a conventional upright freezer, with the adjacent side wall removed, showing the uppermost cold plate only, and showing how frost builds up along the front edge of the cold plate;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side view, with the adjacent side wall removed, of the upper portion of an upright, domestic freezer embodying this inven.ion, and

FIG. 3 is a front view, on a reduced scale, and with the door removed, of FIG. 2.

Referring first to FIG. 1, a conventional freezer has a food storage compartment it has a door 11 with an inwardly protruding, inner panel 12 which maybe recessed as is usual, for providing additional food storage space, has a gasket 13 between the door and the adjacent side of the freezer, and has an uppermost cold plate 14 adjacent to uppermost wall'ifi of the food compartment. As shown by the arrows on FIG. 1, relatively warm, moist air leaking inwardly past the gasket 13, moves in convection currents up along the inner face of the door, and impacts the front edge of the cold plate, forming frost 16 which builds up towards the door until, after a period of time, it contacts the door inner panel freezing the door shut, or prevents the door from closing. Some of this air contacts the front edge of the cold plate as it rises, and some is deflected against the front edge of the cold plate by that portion of the liner 15 which is above the space between the front edge of the cold plate and the door inner panel 12.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3 which illustrate the upper portion of an upright freezer embodying this invention, an uppermost cold plate 20 which consists of an evaporator coil 21 between screens 22, is supported by screws 23, straps 24 and spacers 25 from, below, and closely adjacent to the uppermost wall 26 of food storage compartment 27 of the freezer. Door 28 of the freezer has an inwardly protruding, inner panel 29 which may be recessed for providing additional food storage space. A gasket 36 extends between the door 28 and the adjacent side of the freezer cabinet. The cold plate coil 21 has a tube 4%} for connecting it to the refrigeration system, which is not shown, of the freezer. Other cold plates would be used below the plate 29, but are not involved, and so are not shown.

The construction described so far in connection with the drawings is conventional. This invention adds a metal baffle 31 having a horizontally extending portion 32 contacting, and secured by screws 33 to the liner 26, having an intermediate portion 34 extending vertically below the portion '32, and having a lower, inwardlyangled portion 35 which extends below the level of the cold plate 2d. The baffle portion 34 is located about midway between the front edge of the col-d plate 2t and the adjacent surface of the door inner panel 29. The baffle 31 extends completely across the top of the food storage compartment 27 between innermost, verticallyextcnding, side liners 36 as shown by FIG. 3.

In operation, as shown by the arrows on FIG. 2, the relatively warm, moist air which has leaked inwardly past the gasket 3t} above and below the baffle 31, is deflected by the outer portion of the liner 2'6, and by the baffle 31, so that it does not contact the front edge of the cold plate 20, but is deflected below the latter. This warm air also heats the baflic and the outer portion of the liner 26 to temperatures above freezing so that no frost can form on them.

FIG. 2 shows air rising in convection currents, but this invention could be used where a fan is used to circulate air within the food storage compartment.

In the annexed claims, freezer is intended to apply to an individual freezer or to a freezer compartment of a refrigerator, and cold plate is intended to refer to any form of evaporator coil assembly that can be used for chilling the air within a freezer or freezer compartment.

While the invention has been shown in but one form, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof.

What is claimed is:

1. In an upright cabinet having a food storage compartment, a substantially vertical door extending across said compartment, and a cold plate supported substantially horizontally in said compartment near the top thereof, said plate having a generally door-facing edge, the improvement comprising a substantially fixed bafile supported between said door-facing edge and said door and having a portion extendingbelow the level of said plate, said baffle deflecting relatively warm moist air leaking between said door and said cabinet into said compartment and rising alongside the inner face of said door, away from said door-facing edge when said door is in a closed position.

2. In an upright cabinet having a food storage compartment, a substantially vertical door extending across said compartment, a gasket between said door and the,

adjacent side of said cabinet, and a cold plate supported substantially horizontally in said compartment near the top thereof, said plate having a generally door-facing edge, the improvement comprising a substantially fixed baflle having an upper portion disposed adjacent to the top of said cabinet and having a lower portion extending below the level of said plate, supported between said door-facing edge and said door, said balfie deflecting relatively warm moist air leaking past said gasket into said compartment and rising alongside the inner face of said door, away from said door-facing edge when said door is in a closed position.

3. In an upright freezer cabinet having a food storage compartment with a generally horizontally extending upper liner, a substantially vertical door extending across said compartment, a gasket between said door and the adjacent side of said cabinet, and a cold plate supported substantially horizontally in said compartment near the top thereof, said plate having a generally door-facing edge, the improvement comprising a substantially fixed bafile in contact with said liner across the width of said compartment, said bafiie being supported from said liner between the door-facing edge of said door, and having a lower portion extending below the level of said plate, said baffle deflecting relatively warm, moist air leaking past said gasket into said compartment and rising alongside the inner face of said door, away from said door-facing edge when said door is in a closed position.

4. In an upright freeezer cabinet having a food storage compartment with a generally horizontally extending upper liner, a substantially vertical door extending across said compartment, a gasket between said door and the adjacent side of said cabinet, and a cold plate supported substantially horizontally in said compartment below and adjacent said liner, said plate having a generally doorfacing edge, the improvement comprising a baffle in contact with said liner across the width of said compartment, said baffle contacting and being supported from said liner between said door-facing edge and said door, and having an inwardly angled lower portion extending belowthe level of said plate, said bafile deflecting relatively Warm, moist air leaking past said gasket into said compartment and rising alongside the inner face of said door, away from said door-facing edge when said door is in a closed position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,630,160 5/27 Bayless 62407 2,041,258 5/36 Mitchell 62265 2,062,856 12/36 Armbruster 62-404 2,285,947 6/42 Sateren 62337 2,470,956 5/49 Savidge 62441 ROBERT A. OLEARY, Primary Examiner.

pm" i 

1. IN A UPRIGHT CABINET HAVING A FOOD STORAGE COMPARTMENT, A SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL DOOR EXTENDING ACROSS SAID COMPARTMENT, AND A COLD PLATE SUPPORTED SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTALLY IN SAID COMPARTMENT NEAR THE TOP THEREOF SAID PLATE HAVING A GENERALLY DOOR-FACING EDGE, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING A SUBSTANTIALLY FIXED BAFFLE SUPPORTED BETWEEN SAID DOOR-FACING EDGE AND SAID DOOR AND HAVING A PORTION EXTENDING BELOW THE LEVEL OF SAID PLATE, SAID BAFFLE DEFLECTING RELATIVELY WARM MOIST AIR LEAKING BETWEEN SAID DOOR AND SAID CABINET INTO SAID COMPARTMENT AND RISING ALONGSIDE THE INNER FACE OF SAID DOOR, AWAY FROM SAID DOOR-FACING EDGE WHEN SAID DOOR IS IN A CLOSED POSITION. 